President Puts Focus On Mideast

WASHINGTON — President Reagan said Saturday his meetings in the next week with the president of Egypt and King of Jordan will focus on arriving at a peace accord between Israel and its Arab neighbors.

In his weekly radio address, Reagan also said he will try in his meetings with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Jordan`s King Hussein to keep the five-year-old Iran-Iraq war from endangering oil shipments to the West.

``In both meetings, one item will dominate the agenda -- peace between Israel and her neighbors,`` Reagan said.

Mubarak was to spend Saturday privately after his arrival in Washington. He meets with Reagan and other U.S. officials on Monday. Reagan will meet with Hussein the following Monday.

Reagan said Egypt ``has already proven that peace between the Israelis and Arabs is possible and now faces other problems -- a troubled economy at home and danger on some of its borders. We`re doing all we can to help Egypt meet these challenges because we know that a secure and prosperous Egypt is the cornerstone of peace and stability in that region.``

He said he backs Hussein`s goal of peace negotiation by the end of the year directly between Israel and a joint delegation of Jordanians and Palestinians. ``We`re committed to doing all we can to support the efforts to make this vision a reality.``

Reagan said he and both Arab leaders will discuss the war between Iran and Iraq.

``America and other nations have worked for years now to bring this war to an end -- so far, to no avail,`` Reagan said. ``Yet, if we cannot end the fighting, we and close friends like Egypt and Jordan can keep it from spreading. In particular, we`re determined to preserve the free shipment of oil through the Persian Gulf.``